Esports World Championships at BlizzCon 2016

Pro gamers from all around the world are currently putting their skills to the test, competing to secure a place on one of esports’ biggest stages. BlizzCon 2016 will once again mark the culmination of multiple Blizzard global esports championships—but you don’t need to wait until November to start following the action. The StarCraft II WCS Circuit and WCS Korea leagues are already underway, Hearthstone Spring competitions commence in May, World of Warcraft Arena competitions start in the summer, and the Heroes of the Storm Summer Championship kicks off this month! How do you get in on the action? We’re glad you asked. 2016 StarCraft II Global Finals The world’s best StarCraft II players will descend on BlizzCon again this year to compete for the title of WCS Global Champion and a share of the $500,000 Global Finals prize pool. Last year, Protoss player Kim ‘sOs’ Yoo Jin claimed the title in a thrilling 4–3 final. Will sOs be at BlizzCon again this year to defend his title? Will the final match pit Protoss against Zerg once more? It’ll be months before we know the answers, but there are sure to be plenty of epic encounters in the meantime. For more information on this year’s StarCraft II World Championship Series, head over to the official WCS site. Check out current standings to see which players are closest to earning their tickets to BlizzCon, and put both the schedule and videos sections to good use to ensure that you never miss a match. 2016 Hearthstone World Championship Employing the Standard format being introduced with the Whispers of the Old Gods expansion, this year’s Hearthstone World Championship will see 16 players—four apiece from Europe, China, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas—competing for a prize pool of $1,000,000! Regional Winter Championships wrapped up recently, and there are still a lot of cards to be played in the Spring and Summer Championships and Last Call Invitationals between now and BlizzCon. Last year’s final saw Sweden’s Sebastian ‘Ostkaka’ Engwall put in a thrilling 3–0 performance against Canada’s Dylan ‘Hotform’ Mullins. Both players are competing again this year, but only time will tell whether or not they’ll make it to BlizzCon. Details on the 2016 Hearthstone Championship Tour, including a global event schedule and information on changes that were made following last year’s competition, can be found on the Hearthstone community site. Heroes of the Storm Fall Championship The 2016 Heroes of the Storm Global Circuit consists of Spring, Summer, and Fall Championships. In each of these three distinct competitions, teams battle it out through a series of tournaments to determine which 12 will represent their regions on the global stage. The Fall Championship will culminate at BlizzCon 2016, boasting a prize pool of $1,000,000—and based on their recent play, there’s no reason to think that last year’s champions, Cloud9, won’t be serious contenders to take home the prize at BlizzCon. Can captain Derek ‘DunkTrain’ Arabian lead his team to victory at BlizzCon for the second year in a row? Will Murky picks again elicit cheers that echo throughout the convention hall? We can’t wait to find out! Head over to the Heroes of the Storm esports page for all of the latest news from the Global Circuit as well as a schedule of upcoming events. 2016 World of Warcraft Arena World Championship World of Warcraft Arena teams from around the world will be heading out on the Road to BlizzCon soon. The World Championship will once again culminate on the BlizzCon stage, where a prize pool of $250,000 is up for grabs. Last year’s all-Europe final saw SK Gaming claim the title against Skill Capped EU in a thrilling five-game series. Will Europe dominate the competition again this year, or can we look forward to seeing teams hailing from the Americas, China, Korea, Taiwan, or ANZ in the final? Keep an eye on the official BlizzCon site for more information on the 2016 World of Warcraft Arena World Championship in the coming weeks.